The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

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(32)

3 out of 5 stars

Time Out says

3 out of 5 stars

Size isn’t everything, but cinema doesn’t come much bigger in scale than when Peter Jackson is telling tales. It’s a decade since the New Zealand filmmaker unveiled the last of his ‘Lord of the Rings’ films and went on to tackle the ultimate movie giant, ‘King Kong’. Now he’s back in the head of JRR Tolkien and applying the latest in technology to ‘The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey’ (3D and an untried, super-speedy frame rate of 48 frames per second – 24 is usual). It’s the first of three films to be fashioned from the professor’s novel of faux-mediaeval fantasies chronicling how a magic ring (‘the precious’) came to be in the possession of a mere hairy-footed Hobbit in the first place.

The movie may be grand, but lots of its folk are tiny, which makes for unusual juxtapositions, both odd and amusing. Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman, squished) is a Hobbit living the pipe-and-slippers dream in the Shire. One night, wizard Gandalf (Ian McKellen, towering over the artificially shortened Freeman) and 13 hungry dwarves – many of them with a knack for annoying the audience – come knocking and persuade Bilbo to join them on a quest to win back their kingdom. So begins a journey across wild terrain and back-to-back run-ins with vicious creatures. And all the while Bilbo is wondering what the hell he’s got himself into.

Many have wondered exactly how Jackson has found three movies in one novel. The answer is he opts for the detail and pacing of an extended TV series – an approach that has drawbacks over more than two-and-a-half hours. The initial coming-together of Bilbo and the dwarves feels overlong, and the start of their journey is sluggish and lacks a sense of momentum. There’s a tonal problem, too, as the early dominance of knockabout comedy gives the film an alienating whiff of kids’ TV (not helped by the softly-softly, artificial look of the set for the Shire). Only a flashback showing the loss of the dwarves’ kingdom recalls how breathtaking these films can be.

It’s during the film’s final third that, at last, we feel a true sense of peril and the dwarves’ journey starts to feel purposeful. The turning point is the entry of Gollum. The more dark it becomes, the more ‘The Hobbit’ becomes compelling as a story, and finds a fitting tone. It doesn’t help that the earlier, lighter scenes (lighter in look, as well as feel) seem overexposed. Or that some outdoor scenes look rooted to a studio set – a knock-on, you assume, of the fast frame rate, which can feel like watching a movie on a shoddy HD TV.

Thank Hobbitses for Gollum, then. And thank Hobbitses for the film’s more involving later scenes, including a showdown between two stone giants and a run-in with a villain who rivals Jabba the Hutt in the beauty stakes. It’s scenes such as these that leave you looking forward to the next one rather than wanting to strangle one of the more annoying dwarves or at least bury him in a hole and leave him behind in the Shire.

I enjoyed this film, it started off quite well and in the end I really feel that somebody once told me the world is gonna roll me, I aint the sharpest tool in the shed, she was lookin kind of dumb with her finger and her thumb in the shape of an L on her forhead. WELL THE YEARS START COMIN AND THEY DONT STOP COMIN FED TO THE RULES AND YOU HIT THE GROUND RUNNING, DIDNT MAKE SENSE NOT TO LIVE FOR FUN, YOUR BRAIN GET SMART BUT YOUR HEAD GETS DUMB. SO MUCH TO DO SO MUCH TO SEE SO WHATS WRONG WITH THE BACKSTREETS, YOU'LL NEVER KNOW IF YOU DONT GO, YOU'LL NEVER SHINE IF YOU DONT GLOW.. HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOW YOUR A SMASH MOUTH GET YOUR SHREK ON GET WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVED HAVKASVDJBFJK.DFHSFNKJLDBSJVLFHJS,K

If there is one thing Peter Jackson is capable of, then that is splicing togther one heck of an enjoyable fantasy epic. Martin Freeman fits the role perfectly, and Ian Mckellen looks as though he never left.
These new series of films will not give the Kiwi bearded one another slice of the Oscar pie - the academy were overly generous with the Rings trilogy.
It moves at a satisfying pace, but i will be interested to see how Jacko will extend the book into three films - the first one, i must admit, was stretching it.
In the end, this should have been one long epic film - we shall see how it comes together with number 3.
Kudos to Howard Shore for delivering another monumental piece of music.

Well Peter Jackson, you have really messed up bad. Here's why: 1) Stiff, pathetic and poor acting - laughable performances from some 2) Visuals ok, but we've seen it all before 3) Toe-curling use of a tense Martin Freeman, who is quite obviously unhappy and wants to be somewhere else than in the shoes of Bilbo 4) Many lines read out like a weak read-through of the script caught on camera - very clunky script 5) No tension or atmosphere 6) Plasticy-looking dwarves, you can clearly see the make-up when you shouldn't be able to 7) Overlong and boring as a Christmas cracker joke. Overall The Hobbit was pretentious, pompous and pathetic. Words I would never want to speak about Jackson, a very talented director and the man behind the excellent Fellowship of the Ring. Two Towers was good, Return of the King disappointing but I still thought it was ok. Hobbit was an embarrassment to LOTR, a trilogy I very much admired in certain ways. I hope the team will give the audience what they deserve in the next film... If you TRULY loved The Fellowship, then you would join me in condeming this mess of a film. Or, you can fool yourselves... for a bit. 4/10

Well I was expecting a boring slow start! THERE WASN'T ONE!!!!!!! I went to see this film in IMAX 3D and it blew me away, when you go and see a movie in 3D it often ruins it but this one made it better, like all the lord of the rings it blows you away right from the word go, the sounds were perfect the picture was amazing and gripping and all the way through the film I was totally in a magical world somewhere in Middle Earth. Martin Freeman plays an excellent Bilbo and Richard Armitage has the brave strong face to play thorin. the story is extremely gripping and Gollum once again does not disappoint like always. I cant wait until the next two GO AND SEE IT NOW!!!!b4 and a half stars

I've just seen the film and after reading all the negative ratings, I didn't set my sights to high but I loved the entire fim! i found no problems with the quality and came out of the cinema looking forward to the next film! I havn't read the books because I got bored but now i have seen this amazing film i am definately going to!!

I've just seen the film and after reading all the negative ratings, I didn't set my sights to high but I loved the entire fim! i found no problems with the quality and came out of the cinema looking forward to the next film! I havn't read the books because I got bored but now i have seen this amazing film i am definately going to!!

I don't quite understand the harsh review this movie is getting here.
I watched it to times, and when you can accept that they changed the story quite a bit (as they did with the Lord of the Rings, btw), it's a very enjoyable film.
I don't understand why they made it into 3 movies either, but to be honest I think it works better than I expected, and I can't wait for the other two.
I also think it's ridiculous that the time reviewer complains about the movie beeing too light and similiar to kids-TV, when the book is clearly a childrens book. It's not the Lord of the Rings, and it shouldn't be.

i know people where giving out about the camera work but personally taught that was its saving grace, was very impressed with it, didn't know they where going to do 48' before i went in, was impressed, think it worked brilliantly on that level. the story was overly long and tedious at times. i accept its part of a trilogy but until the box set comes out its being recommended or not as a stand alone. if your interested in the technical aspects of movies go to see it, if your looking for a bit of escapism for a few hours while this is ok there is probably better movies at the moment for that. gave it 3 stars.

I am disappointed. Seemed like a waste of money and time. After ten minutes, I was bored. I gave it a try for 40 minutes more, and had to leave. As Herzog will put it, too many cuts and camera movements, and no real story forthcoming. I found the movie manichean, and could not tolerate all the violence even for the sake of good against evil. I suppose the Newtown tragedy is taking effect. Good.

Was looking forward to it... but it all felt like a live 'making-of' documentry - a kind of studio film of a Time Bandits panto. I hate to say it... but if any of you have seen the dreadful 'Star Wars Christmas Special' - it reminded me of the Wookie family bits! I am being serious. The Pale Ork/Goblin and the wolves looked like X-Box intros. Some better stuff at the end... but the 48 frame film quality is plastic and ironically make s eveything look really fake rather than untro-real. Not impressed. 3 stars at best. A shame.

Saw the film yesterday in 3d. Absolutely loved it and no problems with the 3d quality for me. Good performances all round, especially Richard Armitage and Martin Freeman. Left the cinema on a real high.

Saw the film yesterday in 3d. Absolutely loved it and no problems with the 3d quality for me. Good performances all round, especially Richard Armitage and Martin Freeman. Left the cinema on a real high.

Good, but not great. I am a huge fan of the first 3 films which were great compared to this latest offering. Even my patience was tested for the first hour as it was tediously slow at times. Picked up in the middle and finished on a high,leaving you wanting to see what happens next. However, many will notice a very similar generic (almost copy and paste) repeating story line. Even some of the cinematography was the same as (for example) when they escaped the bridge of doom in LOTR, they used the same walking over the mountain range when they escape a mine in the Hobbit. Very similar, but different. Still very watchable and if you are a fan, then it is a mandatory must-see. Would have given it 3 1/2 stars if I could and hoping for better films in the Trilogy,

The review has it about right. Overall it is a disappointment and the longer the film goes on, and in places it does drag, the more I am convinced that the decision to stretch the originally planned two films to three is about box office revenue and filling film opening slots than actual merit.
The filling and stretching isn't as bad as in the last two Twilight films but this will win no awards other than possibly a few for technical excellence.
I was in a virtually empty large screen with just a few that looked die hard fans and there was no sense of excitement from anyone as they came out. I fear this will be much like the Star Wars prequels with two disappointing films giving clues to an eventual crescendo in the last half of the third.
As a film its like a supermodel great to look at, though the 3D does get to your eyes before the end, but all a bit empty.
Worth 3 stars as an event but struggling to get much above 2 when it comes to plot. Probably 6 out of ten. Must do better in the next film.

Can't wait to see this movie! I've been anxiously awaiting it, ever since Guillermo Del Torro was supposed to be the director. I'm also confident that as epic as this first installment may be, that the following two films will far surpass them in scope. Againâ€¦can't wait to see them all!

Can't wait to see this movie! I've been anxiously awaiting it, ever since Guillermo Del Torro was supposed to be the director. I'm also confident that as epic as this first installment may be, that the following two films will far surpass them in scope. Againâ€¦can't wait to see them all!